pope
GRITtv: Katha Pollitt: Sex, the Pope, and Sarah Palin
Sarah Palin is busily trying to sell "conservative feminism" to the masses, but her idea of feminism certainly doesn't include reproductive choice or sexual freedom. Meanwhile, even the Pope has decided that it's better for sex workers to use condoms than to risk getting HIV or other sexually transmitted infections. So why does the new Congress include more new members opposed to women's right to control their bodies? Katha Pollitt, Nation columnist and longtime prochoice activist, joins Laura in studio for a conversation about the latest on reproductive and sexual justice, Palinism, and more.
Email this page"Democracy Now!": Thurs. Apr. 29 2010
We speak with St. Paul-based attorney, Jeff Anderson, who has filed hundreds of lawsuits alleging sexual abuse by priests and bishops since 1983. He filed a lawsuit last week against the Vatican in a Milwaukee court and wants the Church to release any files it has on sexual abuse cases involving priests. It was his discovery of previously undisclosed documents that fueled the latest wave of accusations leading all the way up to the Vatican. We bring you a Democracy Now special with the singer-songwriter, poet, artist, and punk rock legend, Patti Smith, on her life, her art and her singing and speaking out. “I do things that make people upset. My political views or my humanist views have caused me a lot of censorship, but I don’t have a problem with that,” Smith says. “What I would have more of a problem with is, if I had to look back on my life and say, ‘Yeah I compromised here’ and ‘yeah I did this so I could get that’–once you start doing that it’s like a house of cards, it all falls apart.” "Democracy Now!" is a daily independent newshour.
GRITtv: John Fugelsang: Guns, God, and Goldman
Gun advocates rallied this week in support of their right to bear arms, the Pope has said that his church has sinned, Goldman Sachs is giving out bonuses in the throes of SEC charges, and laptops are taking pictures of kids while they sleep! This may sound like a vision of the end times, but really it's just another week in the news these days. Actor and comedian John Fugelsang joins Laura to try to make some sense--or some light--out of all of this. GRITtv with Laura Flanders brings participatory democracy onto your computer screen and into your living room, bridging the gap between audience and advocates. Watch any show, at any time: http://grittv.org Distributed by Tubemogul.
Gay USA: Apr. 2-8 2010: The Military, Prom, and Kate Clinton
Andy and Ann discuss the watering down of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" and what the details are of the new policy. Also, they continue to tell the story of the high school senior in rural Georgia who fought for his right to bring a male date to the prom and tie in other news about the constitutionality of equal rights. Finally, they are joined by special guest Kate Clinton. Gay USA is a weekly news-hour that offers comprehensive news.
GRITtv: Memories of Abuse
The New York Times reported recently on yet another scandal in the Catholic Church, this one reaching as high as the current Pope. When he was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the current Pope Benedict XVI was the head of the Vatican office called the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith from 1981 to 2005. While there, he failed to respond to letters reporting that Father Lawrence Murphy was responsible for sexually abusing as many as 200 deaf boys. The Times wrote: Father Murphy not only was never tried or disciplined by the church’s own justice system, but also got a pass from the police and prosecutors who ignored reports from his victims, according to the documents and interviews with victims. Actors Brian Jones and Jordan Mahome came to our studio to read a letter from one of Father Murphy's victims, and the response from the Church. These letters are graphic. GRITtv with Laura Flanders brings participatory democracy onto your computer screen and into your living room, bridging the gap between audience and advocates. Watch any show, at any time: http://grittv.org Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Kate Clinton: Don't Mess With Nuns
Kate Clinton signs up in solidarity with Catholic nuns: not only did they take on Bart Stupak and anti-healthcare Republicans, they also aren't afraid of the Pope.
GRITtv: The F Word: Trust Just Isn't Enough
I've had it with trust. Too much of it, and people will ignore the obvious. Too little of it, and they'll do exactly the same thing.Take the Tea Partiers. According to reporting on GRITtv and now the New York Times, a whole lot of Tea Partiers see no conflict in receiving government help while railing against government. The contradictions have no relevance when they just don't trust.
"Democracy Now!": Mon. Mar. 29 2010
Economist Dean Baker says that banks could be the "big winners" of President Obama’s foreclosure prevention program; as Obama visits Afghanistan, Tavis Smiley delves into the life of Rev. Martin Luther King and examines his opposition to the Vietnam War; a dissident female Catholic bishop calls for the Pope to resign over an old sex abuse scandal. "Democracy Now!" is a daily independent newshour.
GRITtv: The F Word: Catholics And Choice: Difference of Opinion?
The Catholic Church's stance on reproductive choice has been unyielding; in 2004 the Pope struck out and said that pro-choice Catholic politicians (like then-Presidential candidate John Kerry) should be denied communion. Even birth control is too much for the new Pope Benedict, Now facing flagging attendance and shrinking contributions, some of that hard-lining is going soft. Given the chance to fill some empty pews by allowing conservative Anglicans into the ranks, the Catholic Church is backing off. So what about all those fights over all those years? What about all those denied a place in their faith, and most of all, those who died due to botched and politicized abortions? All those who were forced to bear children against their will, or were infected with HIV due to lies about condoms -- or no sex ed at all? Now we find out they suffered simply over a difference of opinion? One anti-choicer quoted on the topic recently celebrated -- "Anglicans are committing doctrinal suicide," he said. So maybe there's not so much openness going on as flat out pragmatics. On the other hand, RH Reality Check notes that half the worldwide members of the Anglican church live in Africa, where conservative clergy preach against condoms, homosexuality, and women's choice. Maybe it's less of a split than we'd like to think. So much for the reformation -- all Conservative Anglicans need is Bishops back. Just don't mention divorce.
